Despite being the darling last for many Alden retailers, my experience on this thread combined with my own personal experience with Barrie reminds me that Barrie may not be for everyone or may be for you--if you're willing to invest in trying multiple pairs on and possibly returning them.

I'm a 9D Brannock as well. Most of my Barrie shoes are 8.5Ds. I would say they all fit me well nowadays, but not necessarily at the outset or during a sometimes protracted break-in period. I've occasionally encountered issues in which I felt tightness in the tarsal/vamp area, particularly with shell lwbs worn sockless in the summertime while walking extensively (probably not the best thing to do in the summer; I later discovered unlined suede and found that to be very suitable for summer lounging and walking). All of my 8.5Ds now have more relaxed corkbeds after repeated wear and after wearings around the home, so no problems whatsoever these days with blisters or tightness.

This brings me to the issue of boots. You'll read posts here about differences between Barrie-lasted shoes and Barrie-lasted boots. YMMV. Some say there is no difference whatsoever. I happen to be in the camp that finds that an 8.5D is a bit tight for certain boots, which led me to order a few 8.5E boots--much to my satisfaction podiatrically. In my experience, shell--being a material with less give over time as compared with calf--boots tend to feel tighter in similar sizes as compared with calf and suede.

I think it's worth it, if you're very interested in a particular boot, to try either an 8.5E or an 8E. I sized down to an 8E for my whiskey lwb (you can probably find my pics somewhere in a search of this thread), and I've found over time that I prefer that fit to my 8.5D lwbs in other shades and materials. FWIW, I recently bought the Greenwich boot in tobacco chamois in an 8E. That boot came in what I believe to be another relatively unyielding, non-stretch material. It was awkwardly tight two weeks ago upon arrival, but it's already loosened up via cork bed relaxation, which allowed me to wear it without discomfort during a 12 hour workday this week. I find the fit now to be comfortingly snug, rather than tight and regret-over-impulse-buy inducing.

Best of luck in your search and wear your Aldens in great health!

Thanks for the input!

I have a lot of experience with Chromexcel, but I doubt it would stretch that much to the point of comfort/pain difference. Perhaps an 8.5E Barrie boot would be the ticket- socks can be adjusted accordingly to fine tune comfort levels.

I guess it's also worth noting that my 8.5D bluchers in Barrie only hurt widthwise- length seemed to be a non-issue (and most charts only place about a 1/4" difference between 8.5 and 9).

Continuing this train of thought, we should run a poll of which Alden shoes get the best reaction from wives/girlfriends/girls at bars/any other potential love interests. Similar to a huge thread on Basenotes (the cologne forum) on "Which cologne gets the most female compliments." Everyone list their top three.

I've been eyeing the Greenwich boot for sometime...but I'm petrified of jumping on an order of a Barrie lasted shoe.

I take 8.5D in Trubalance, a 9D in Hampton (albeit slightly long), and 8.5 in the Barrie has me in the hole due to a pair of bluchers that all but crushed my tarsals. It shocked me how much tighter the Barrie blucher was, while my Indys have been pain free and perfect since day 1. I'm pretty sure my Brannock size is a 9D, since I have 4 pairs of Rancourts and Red Wings that are all spot on.

I suppose I could go 8.5E in Barrie, but maybe the heel would be too bulbous then?

I would be nervous, too. In my experience, I've had Barrie lasted shoes and boots that fit all over the place, all in the same size (half size down from my Brannock). Some are super comfortable, some borderline too big and some entirely too small. I'm now convinced everything about the shoe/boot plays a role in the fit, from the type of leather, to the type of welt, to who made them, and I can no longer simply order my size and expect the fit to be good.

Continuing this train of thought, we should run a poll of which Alden shoes get the best reaction from wives/girlfriends/girls at bars/any other potential love interests. Similar to a huge thread on Basenotes (the cologne forum) on "Which cologne gets the most female compliments." Everyone list their top three.

All the talk about brushing has made me wonder the following. Do any of you have a professional buffing machine with a horse hair wheel and soft buffing wheel combination? I have been toying with the idea of one of these http://www.pilgrimshoemachine.com/buffing_wheels_d.html

or alternatively seeing if I can simply buy a horse hair wheel that would fit on a bench buffer that they sell at Lowes or Home Depot.